


Paper Hearts

by wolfstarheart



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, Jewelry, M/M, Sirius Is A Nerd, Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day Fluff, jewelry shop au, mentioned jily - Freeform, remus is easily embarrassed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-14
Updated: 2016-02-14
Packaged: 2018-05-20 09:35:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6001093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wolfstarheart/pseuds/wolfstarheart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>EDIT: this is old and bad so idk why you'd wanna read it.. </p><p>Of course, that just meant he had to actually make eye-contact with the shorter man, which was a great thing and a terrible thing at the same time. 'He’s obviously taken, Remus,' he chastised himself, but if he held the customer’s gaze for a little too long than was strictly necessary, he didn’t feel a single ounce of guilt about it.</p><p>or, the one where sirius is rich and charming and and remus is just trying to get through the valentine's day rush in one piece.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Paper Hearts

Remus hated Valentine’s day.

He wasn’t a bitter single person (well, maybe a little bit, but he had enough ice cream and Friends DVDs to get him through the day at home). There was just something about the holiday that had people proposing left, right and center, and normally that wouldn’t bother him-- he and most of his friends still had a few more years left before everyone started getting hitched-- but he’d only just remembered why he was hesitant to take this job in the first place.

He worked at a jewelry store, and for the record: most of the rings people picked out were _ugly_.

Even the decor was obnoxious. Pink confetti everywhere. It was in his _hair_ , for Christ’s sake. And the music, oh god, the music-- if he had to listen to one more Stevie Wonder song he’d probably burst into tears.

“Ah, excuse me?”

 _Maybe they’re talking to someone else,_ Remus prayed. _One of the other workers, please._

“I don’t mean to distract you from your livetweeting, but how much is this ring?”

Remus looked up from his phone with a sigh-- was it possible to _gasp_ mid-sigh?

Whoever this guy was proposing to was the luckiest person alive.

“Sorry… what ring?” He rubbed his nose embarrassedly, placing the phone face-down on the counter. Of course, that just meant he had to actually make eye-contact with the shorter man, which was a great thing and a terrible thing at the same time. _He’s obviously taken, Remus,_ he chastised himself, but if he held the customer’s gaze for a little too long than was strictly necessary, he didn’t feel a single ounce of guilt about it.

“That one, right there.” The man pointed at a huge, heavy silver ring encrusted with diamonds right in the center of the showcase.

Remus’ eyes were caught by the black nailpolish applied perfectly to the guy’s nails, until he actually saw the ring.

He couldn’t help it. He choked.

“What’s wrong?” his customer asked, in a concerned tone that Remus still heard the hint of amusement in. “You’re not sick, are you?”

Remus shook his head, face reddening as he slid the glass case open to take out the ring in question.

The huge, heavy, diamond-encrusted _fucking expensive_ ring in question.

“That’s fifteen thousand dollars,” Remus managed.

The man had the audacity to _shrug_.

“I’ll have it,” he said, pulling out his credit card, and Remus blinked for a few solid seconds before realizing that he was meant to take it from him.

“Jesus,” he muttered, ringing it up on the register, “you must love this person a whole fucking lot.”

He felt the other man stop breathing for a second, and he looked up, wincing. “Sorry, that was unprofessional-- hey, are you laughing?”

And he-- Sirius Orion Black, according to his card-- unmistakably was laughing. It was a cute laugh too, the kind he definitely did not expect from this leather-clad guy with painted black nails and too much money.

“It’s not for me,” Sirius said quickly, before dissolving into giggles again. “It’s my best friend’s, James. He’s proposing to his girlfriend today.”

“Original,” Remus commented dryly, gesturing at the huge pink papier-mâché heart hovering over both of their heads.

“Yeah, I tried talking him out of it. No chance, he was dead set on it being today,” Sirius replied with a grin.

“Well, I hope she says yes,” Remus muttered, handing him his bill. He tried not to think about what he could buy with _fifteen thousand dollars_.

“Oh, she will,” he assured Remus, grinning as he leaned over the counter. “He’s an idiot and a hopeless romantic, but Lily likes that, apparently. Or she just has incredibly bad taste.”

Remus was distinctly aware of the fact that he could smell Sirius Black’s expensive cologne. He was also very aware that he was blushing. Goddamn his easily-embarrassed genes.

“He must trust you a whole lot,” he said quickly, straightening up and forcing Sirius to step back a little as he reached for a box to put the ring in. “God knows I’d want to see the ring I’m proposing to my girlfriend with.” He closed the box firmly, focusing too hard on tying the ribbon so he wouldn’t have to meet Sirius’ stare. “Not that I’d date a girl, but…”

Remus only realized he’d basically just announced he was super gay the second after he said it, but it was too late to take it back now. Running a hand through his hair, he sighed. “It’s been a long day,” he finished.

Sirius looked at him and snorted. “Yeah, hi-five for hating those soppy hetero Valentine’s day ads too,” he muttered. “And sure, James trusts me. We’re like brothers. And I have better taste in jewelry than him, anyway.”

Remus was no doctor, but he was 99% sure he was going into shock.

“Right,” he said, blinking at Sirius. “ _Right_.”

They stared at each other for a few seconds, the corners of Sirius’ mouth twitching, before Remus was shaken out of his daydream by some lady with a bad haircut. “Excuse me, could you show me a few of your bracelets?”

“Er, yeah,” Remus said slowly. “Let me finish up, and I’ll be right with you.” As the lady rolled her eyes and walked away, he realized he’d been holding the box with James’ ring stationary for far too long. The heat rising to his cheeks yet again, he placed it in a bag and handed it to Sirius, trying not to shiver when the other man’s fingers touched his own for a brief second.

He was almost sure Sirius was doing it on _purpose_.

For a second Sirius just smirked at him, and Remus considered shooing him out of the store, or maybe quitting and moving to Alaska, before he said, “Listen, you free the day after tomorrow?”

Remus’ eyes widened despite himself. “...Me?”

“Yeah, you, of course. Unless you think I’m just here to hit on that lady who’s currently trying to force open a display case?” He gestured to the woman who’d just approached Remus with the pen he was using to fill out his customer details, covering up his laugh with a cough.

“I should really…” Remus trailed off.

“You should really have dinner with me Saturday night,” Sirius said, shoving his free hand into his jacket pocket, and for the first time looking slightly nervous. “Not tomorrow, because I’ll be hungover from the celebration party after Lily says yes, but we can grab some food and maybe make fun of obnoxious people in the park afterwards?”

Remus nodded far too quickly. “Just as long as it’s not five star fine dining,” he said, smiling properly. “And are you suggesting a walk in the park? You said James was the cliché one.”

“Nah, pizza’s the way to go. And I guess… I guess you got me there, ah--”

“Remus,” Remus said, grinning. “It’s on your receipt.”

“I was too busy looking somewhere else,” Sirius countered, not breaking eye contact.

Silence.

And then--

“I’ll call you,” Remus said, at the same time Sirius mumbled, “That was terrible.” At once, the shorter guy’s face lit up, and suddenly Remus decided he didn’t hate Valentine’s day so much after all.

“See you around, Remus,” Sirius said, regaining his composure quickly enough to wink, before striding out of the store.

Remus, who couldn’t say the same of himself, just watched him leave, raising a hand to his face to feel the warmth positively radiating off his face.

“See you, Sirius Black,” he mumbled, brushing a bit of pink confetti out of his hair and watching it flutter to the ground, unable to keep a smile from spreading across his face.

**Author's Note:**

> so um, i hoped you liked it! you can find me at heymarauders.tumblr.com if you want to cry about wolfstar with me. :^)


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